The Brains Behind Mary’s Burgers Give Us Their Ultimate Bar Playlist

Emily Swanson |

January 20, 2017

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Have you ever found yourself perched at the bar of a local haunt, covertly Shazaming every second track that starts blaring out over the stereo? If you’ve ever been to Mary’s in Newtown, it’s a near certainty you have (assuming you could jolt yourself out of the hearty food coma brought on by their trashcan bacon-filled cheeseburgers). Maybe you’ve even taken to pestering the bar staff about what’s on their regular rotation. It’s a question Jake Smyth and Kenny Graham cop a lot as the founders and head honchos of Mary’s. So much so that they decided to put together their ultimate bar playlist, complete with expert drink pairings (why yes, Notorious B.I.G. does go impeccably well with cognac). It’s at this point we’d like to issue a warning that the below may lead to incredibly raucous good times.

Radiohead – ‘A Punch Up at a Wedding’
Believe it or not, Mary’s doesn’t play thrash metal at every moment. This is a fucking ace lunchtime jam. The base line and groove makes most shit things go away. Also good when feeling loved up towards the end of a night, it’s a handy song to drunkenly fumble to.Best Paired With: Scotch. Cheap, like a wedding…

Metallica – ‘Master of Puppets’
MASTER!! MASTER!! This song will kick your arse before spitting in your face. The original metal gods, age shall not weary them…Best Paired With: A can of VB. Fast.

Queens of the Stone Age – ‘Song for the Dead’
This was the first song ever played at Mary’s. Dave Grohl on the skins still proves he is one the greats. These guys play every night on our stereos, but this song is the standout killer even today. The last 30 seconds can cause minor strokes in the unprepared.Best Paired With: Jack Daniels.

A$AP Ferg – ‘Dump Dump’
When this tune comes on, the staff get a bit rowdy. The chorus is THE most sing-along-able yet totally inappropriate in the history of music. Give it a try.Best Paired With: Dark ‘n’ Stormy.

Marmozets – ‘Born Young and Free’
The lady who fronts this band makes my fucking hair stand on end. Dirty, old school rock’n’roll, they were our favourite discovery at Splendour in the Grass a few years ago. Grit your teeth and scream in a stranger’s face. “We don’t give a rip!!!”Best Paired With: Warm gin.

Blur – ‘To The End’
Sometimes it’s about showing a little love and having a sing-along with your best mates. The words of this song became a favourite of ours after seeing them at Splendour in the Grass.Best Paired With: A glass of Pinot. “Just to the brim thanks!”

Slaves – ‘The Hunter’
A friend from Scotland sent Kenny this song after his daughter Hunter was born. We were just really happy it was a rockin’, menacing tune that we could play at Mary’s when we were having too much fun at the bar! The riff tiptoes around until it kicks off – you’ll know when it kicks off.Best Paired With: Cold yellow Chartreuse, double.

Deftones – ‘Passenger’
A staff favourite at Mary’s. You can literally see the “Fuck you!” faces appear when it comes on. It’s a builder; the chorus is an explosion of angst and pleasure. Singing along at full pelt is permitted when this song plays.Best Paired With: Really expensive red wine and understand that that in itself is pretty fucking rock’n’roll.

Nirvana – ‘Scoff’
One of the reasons that Nirvana is one of the first bands you learn to play on guitar. It’s piss easy to play and sounds mean as fuck! Kurt screams “Gimme back my alcohol” a lot in this song, something we can all relate to.Best Paired With: A gin and tonic that has sat on the bar for 20 minutes, it’s probably not even yours.

Notorious B.I.G. – ‘Gimme The Loot’
A dirty ’90s East Coast hip-hop bass line, one of the greatest rappers of all time over the top, it ain’t shit by any stretch of the imagination. Turn it up, rap along if you know the words.Best Paired With:Cognac, of course.